Lincoln Trails

Back in my boy Scout days, a small group of us agreed to walk the Lincoln trails. These were three Hiking paths in Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois.

The Kentucky Boy Scout Lincoln Trail hike was a 33-mile trek that ran annually from 1942 through the early 1990s. It began in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, and ended at the Memorial Building on the grounds of the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park near Hodgenville.

To earn the Lincoln Trail medal, scouts had to carry their own gear, complete the hike by 4 p.m. on the second day, and recite the Gettysburg Address from memory on the steps of the Memorial building.

The Illinois Boy Scout Lincoln Trail Hike is a 20-mile journey that retraces the path Abraham Lincoln often walked from New Salem to Springfield to borrow law books from his friend John T. Stuart2.

This historic hike, organized by the Abraham Lincoln Council, has been a tradition since 1936 and is part of the annual Lincoln Pilgrimage Weekend. Scouts who complete the hike can earn a special medal, and the route passes through Sangamon and Menard counties, offering a hands-on way to connect with Lincoln’s legacy3.

The Indiana Boy Scout Lincoln Trail Hike took place in Lincoln State Park, near Lincoln City, Indiana, and typically connected key historic sites from Lincoln’s boyhood home to the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial.

While the exact length varied depending on the chosen route, the trail system within the park includes several interconnected paths ranging from 0.8 to 3.7 miles each. Scouts often combined these segments into a longer commemorative hike, typically around 10 to 15 miles, to honor Lincoln’s early years in Indiana.

The hike passed landmarks like the Nancy Lincoln Gravesite, Lincoln’s family cabin site and the Colonel Jones home.

Cruising around on my computer, I am not sure if these still exist as they did then. We did them and will never forget them. Maybe they should be reactivated.